Not Just a Substitute
by LadyWallace
Summary: Dean gets hurt and Sam's not there, but Cas is. Set post 5x3 NOT SLASH just friendship


**A/N: Still not sure how I feel about this one but I have picked it over enough so I thought I'd just post it. I just wanted to write a story with Dean and Cas to kind of feature how I think Dean feels about him. And no, this is not slash, Dean obviously stated that Cas is like a brother to him. Oh yeah, and I don't if Dean would watch "The Princess Bride" but who hasn't seen it? It's my sick movie ;) **

**None of the characters belong to me, obviously, which is sad. **

Not Just a Substitute

A Supernatural Fanfic

It had only been a couple weeks since he and Sam had parted ways, but Dean was already feeling the effects of it. He didn't want to admit it, but he was regretting it. They had been together, through so much, in the past few years that not having Sam there was just…wrong to Dean. He found himself continually glancing over to the passenger's side when he was driving to ask about the job they were working, or if Sam wanted to get something to eat but he wasn't there. Sleeping in the dirty motel rooms at night without a presence in the other bed made him feel uneasy. And worst of all, he had no one to watch his back in a fight, and eventually felt the effects of it because he had actually forgotten that he didn't have anyone else there with him.

Yeah, he had killed the demon he was hunting, but not before it had tossed Dean around like a sack of flour, dislocating his shoulder, cracking ribs, and giving him a concussion. It had jumped him from behind when he wasn't looking and he had been taken down, fighting for his life, fearing that he would die there, now, and no one would know until he was long overdue to show up somewhere or call.

Once the demon was dead, he drug himself to his feet and limped back to the Impala—he seemed to also have twisted his right ankle. His left arm was useless and his right hand had been stepped on, making it hard to even grasp the wheel, but somehow he managed it, though his head hurt and he knew he really wasn't in any shape to drive. The motel was five miles away though and he had to get back there. He wasn't looking forward to popping the shoulder joint back in by himself. He had never done it before, though he knew the theory behind the action.

He was slumping at the wheel by the time he got to the motel and he parked crookedly, not even able to find the energy to turn the car off. He leaned forward and rested his aching head against the wheel, just trying to breathe. Even that felt like an effort. He didn't think he could get into his room.

"Dean."

Dean jumped so far, his head smacked against the window, only making it worse. He cursed, folding over himself with breathless gasps, as he looked over to see Cas in the passenger's seat, watching him with a slight wince.

"Damn it, Cas, how many times do I have to tell you?" he gasped.

"I'm sorry," Castiel replied. "I thought you might need some help with your brother gone."

"I'm fine," Dean growled and somehow got his door open, and swung his legs out, only to crumple onto the ground. Cas was there picking him up before he could even try again.

"I don't think you're fine, Dean. I have come to understand that when you say you are fine it is more likely that you are anything but."

Dean cursed at him, but didn't push away, leaning heavily on the angel and fumbling in his pocket for the room key. Cas had to open the door since the hunter couldn't seem to get the key in properly and drug Dean inside, depositing him on the bed, before he stood back and just watched the hunter as if unsure of what to do. Dean unfolded himself slightly, looking up at the angel incredulously. "Well, you're here so you might as well help. I have a shoulder that needs to be popped back into socket."

"This was much easier when I had my ability to heal," Castiel said as if to himself. "I'm not sure what to do for you."

Dean was struggling out of his jacket, only really succeeding with hurting himself more. "Just…crap," he stopped as his shoulder ached from the movement and Cas stepped forward to help him remove the jacket and his over shirt.

"Okay," Dean said as he caught his breath again. "I need to bind my ribs first, so I don't do more damage to them. I have a first aid kit in the car. Can you get it?" Cas was gone and back in a second and Dean blinked blearily at him with a slow nod. "Good."

"Now what do you need me to do?" Castiel asked, setting the bag next to Dean.

"Get these ribs bound," Dean said, feeling utterly helpless and hating it. He was rummaging in the first aid kit for his emergency bottle of scotch and hoping it wasn't empty. "You're gonna have to do it, because I can't do it with this arm." He found the bottle and took a deep drink of it, hoping it might numb the pain a bit.

Castiel found a roll of bandage and pulled up Dean's shirt to see the damage. He ran his hand over his bruised side, feeling for the cracked ribs. Dean grunted, and vaguely slapped his hand away. "Stop pawing me, dude. You haven't even taken me out to dinner yet." Cas frowned but kept prodding a few more times before he seemed satisfied Dean's ribs weren't too badly damaged. Dean snorted to himself as he took another drink. Even Sam had a gentler touch than the angel. He sighed sadly, as Cas started to bind his chest. It had become almost ritual, the well-practiced patching up he and Sam had done for each other over the years after their hunts. They never seemed lucky enough to get off without a scratch. Sometimes it just wasn't as bad as others. They didn't even have to talk to each other during their work anymore, just knew exactly what the other needed as they stitched and bandaged and washed as easily as anything. The fact that Dean didn't have Sam with him now, when he was hurt and needed someone to help him patch himself up, was almost worse than not having someone at his back in the fight. They had both fought solo many times, but usually, at least in recent years, they had been there for the other afterward, apart from a few times.

But on the other hand, Cas was a friend, a good friend on Dean's part, and he was a very, dare he say, pleasant surprise. Dean never would have called him for something so trivial as a couple cracked ribs and a dislocated shoulder, but Cas had been there anyway, somehow sensing Dean needed help, even though he was too stubborn to admit it. He had been there when Sam hadn't. And yeah, Dean knew it wasn't really Sam's fault; he was an adult, and he knew it was as much his fault as Sam's, but still. It hurt. And Cas, well, what about him? Dean only knew that he was very glad to see the angel when he came to his aid, and he kind of missed the cooky guy when he wasn't there. Dean had actually, almost, begun to think of him as another brother. A strange, vague and occasionally annoyingly blunt brother, but, yeah, a brother all the same.

Cas finished the bandages around Dean's ribs, and though it restricted his breathing a bit, he found they hurt less.

"What now?" Castiel asked as he stepped back.

"Shoulder," Dean grunted taking another deep drink of the scotch before putting it on the side table. "You know how to do it?" He looked warily up as Cas shook his head. "All right. Pretty much, you just give it a good yank and when you hear it pop, that means it's back in."

Cas stepped to his side and took Dean's injured arm firmly, using one hand to brace against his shoulder. "Like this?" he asked.

"Yeah, good," Dean said, bracing himself. "Now just give…" He gasped out a strangled cry as a loud, sickening pop sounded through the room, and he crumpled onto the bed, wracked in pain.

"Dean?" Cas' worried voice was right above him, a hand on his back. "Did I do something wrong? Are you okay?"

"S'okay, Cas, all good," Dean gasped out, still curled up, but slowly managing to get some of his bodily functions back. He was covered in sweat and he slowly sat up with Castiel's help, leaning slightly against the angel as he fought to get his bearings again. Finally Cas thought it was all right to let him go and thoughtfully handed him the bottle of scotch again. Dean took it and drank the rest in one go, wishing he had restocked. He nodded vaguely to the first aid bag. "Help me get my arm into a sling, I'm gonna need to keep it still."

Castiel used some extra bandage to tie the arm up against Dean's chest and after that he inspected and cleaned the rest of Dean's hurts. Though he had a giant lump on his head, he wasn't seeing double and his hand was bruised, but none of the bones were broken, so he supposed it could have been worse.

"You should rest now, Dean," Castiel told him as he helped him off with his boots and positioned him more comfortably on the bed with his back against the pillows. He cast a look to the microwave in one corner of the room. "Would you…like something to eat?"

Dean chuckled, unable to help himself. The thought of the angel trying to run the microwave was almost enough for him to say yes, but he wasn't feeling that mean, and he really was hungry. "Nah," he said to Castiel's confused look. "We'll order a pizza. You had any before? It's good." He reached for his phone and ordered a pizza with so much meat it would have given Sam a heart attack on sight. He might have actually done it to spite his brother for not being there, he wasn't sure, but he was going to damn well enjoy the pizza anyhow.

"Is there anything else I can do for you, Dean?" Cas asked, obviously looking a bit helpless and lost.

"Hand me the remote for the TV, and then could you check and see if I have any beers left in the fridge?" Cas did as he asked and came back in a second with a beer, which he opened for Dean after realizing that he couldn't with his bad arm. Dean smiled and thanked him, flipping through the channels. Cas still stood awkwardly by the bed and Dean was about to tell him to sit down when the pizza came. Cas went to retrieve it, though had to confer with Dean about the money, which made the delivery boy give them weird looks before he snatched the money and booked it out of there. Cas set the pizza in Dean's lap and Dean continued to flip the channels on TV before he perked up, finding something he wanted to watch.

"Oh, dude, I haven't seen this movie in forever! Sammy and I used to watch it when we were sick."

"What is it?" Castiel asked.

"_The Princess Bride_," Dean said with a grin. "Yeah, kind of a chick flick, I know, but it's a classic." He looked up at the angel and finally patted the space on the bed next to him. "Come on, Cas. Sit down, you're creeping me out just standing there like that! Unless you got somewhere to go." He hoped he didn't. He didn't much feel like being alone right now though he would die before he admitted it.

"I have no where I need to be," Castiel replied and awkwardly sat on the bed, propping himself up against the headboard. "I will stay with you as long as you want. You might need assistance with your injuries."

"Sure, or we can just say we're hanging out because we deserve a little downtime," Dean said. "Even Sammy and I do it sometimes. Not as much as we used to, but convalescing, you know." He opened the pizza box finally and pulled out a slice, taking a huge bite and savoring the grease and sauce even as it dripped down his chin. He wiped it away and offered the box to Cas. "Come on, Cas, have a slice. You won't regret it."

"Are you certain?" Castiel asked, eyeing the pizza suspiciously.

Dean choked back a laugh. "Seriously, dude. It's not gonna kill you."

Cas hesitated then picked up a piece of pizza carefully, holding it like a bomb, but didn't eat it yet. "I know I'm a poor substitute for your brother, Dean," he said after a while, sounding a bit regretful. Dean looked over at the angel, his eyes on the TV and the pizza dripping grease on his lap. He nudged Cas' foot with his and gave him a small smile.

"You're not just a substitute, Cas. You're a friend, and I don't have many of those. Hardly any at all anymore. Thank you for coming."

Cas gave him a small smile. A Cas version of a grin, Dean had figured, though he would probably never know for sure. "You're my friend too, Dean."

"And that's enough of the chick flick moments," Dean said, grabbing another piece of pizza. "Enjoy the movie. And you better eat that before it ruins your dorky trench coat."

Cas looked down and finally took a tentative bite of the pizza, watching the movie contemplatively. "Dean, does the man in black not realize the strange little man switched the goblets?"

Dean smothered a laugh. "Just watch, Cas."

They sat shoulder to shoulder watching _The Princess Bride_ and eating pizza (Cas ate more than Dean by the end) and Dean managed to doze off late that night, feeling safe and content for the first time in a long while. Castiel could have left during the night and Dean probably wouldn't have known it until he woke in the morning, but he didn't. He sat on the bed the whole night and watched after the hunter while he slept, seeming to know how vulnerable Dean felt being hurt with no one to watch his back. Until Sam came back, he would make a point to look after Dean. He knew that he would probably never share the same strength of bond Dean shared with Sam, but he was glad to be able to call the hunter friend at least. And he was willing to repay that friendship in any way he could.

* * *

**Hope you all enjoyed this, let me know what you thought. I've got a couple other TeenChester fics too if you want to check them out. And if anyone has any recs for good Dean and Cas friendship stories that are not slash, let me know, I would be very happy if you'd share :) (self recs are allowed ;)**


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